Grand jury charges Phillips 66 for alleged oil dumping in LA sewer

Phillips 66 Co. is facing a federal indictment for allegedly discharging hundreds of thousands of gallons of industrial wastewater from its Carson oil refinery into the Los Angeles County sewer system and failing to report the illegal dumping to authorities, the U.S. Justice Department announced Thursday.

A federal grand jury returned a six-count indictment charging the Houston, Texas-based energy business with negligently and knowingly violating the Clean Water Act, prosecutors said. Arraignment was expected in the coming weeks in United States District Court in downtown LA.

“Just like the rest of us, corporations have a duty to follow the law, so when companies contaminate, they must be held accountable,” U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said in a statement. “My office will continue to be vigilant in safeguarding our natural resources for all to enjoy.”

Phillips 66 released a statement that said, “Phillips 66 will continue its cooperation with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and is prepared to present its case in these matters in court. The company remains committed to operating safely and protecting the health and safety of our employees and the communities where we operate.”

According to the grand jury’s indictment issued Wednesday, for about two-and-a-half hours on the early morning of Nov. 24, 2020, Phillips’ refinery in Carson discharged into the county’s sewer system industrial wastewater with a concentration of oil and grease more than 300 times the amount allowed in the company’s operating permit. Phillips officials at the Carson facility then failed to notify the LA County Sanitation Districts of the discharge.

The sanitation department estimated that the discharge dumped into the sewer 310,000 gallons of illegal industrial wastewater containing 64,000 pounds of oil and grease, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Prosecutors contend the company’s “wastewater pretreatment system process controls and practices were inadequate to prevent or quickly address the non-compliant discharge.”

In December 2020, the LACSD gave Phillips violation notices for the wastewater release and failing to notify county officials about the discharge, “which adversely affected an LACSD facility,” prosecutors said. In a letter from a Phillips manager to county sanitation officials the following month, the company acknowledged the illegal discharge and pledged to “retrain operations personnel” on discharges and the procedure to notify the county sanitation department.

But on the evening of Feb. 8, 2021, Phillips’ Carson refinery — this time for about five-and-a-half hours — discharged into the sewer system roughly 480,000 gallons of illegal industrial wastewater carrying at least 33,700 pounds of oil and grease, prosecutors said.

In March 2021, LACSD issued violation notices to Phillips for the second illegal wastewater discharge and failure to notify the county, which a Phillips manager at the Carson refinery again acknowledged.

If convicted on all six counts, the company would face a maximum sentence of five years’ probation on each charge and up to $2.4 million in fines, prosecutors said.

Phillips 66 announced in October that it plans to close its Carson and Wilmington refinery operations in the fourth quarter of 2025. A five-mile pipeline connects the two facilities.

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